A month later, no sign of missing N.H. teenager

CONWAY, N.H. — Despite added publicity and a $20,000 reward, there are still no hard leads in the search for a 15-year-old North Conway girl who vanished one month ago on her way home from high school, the FBI agent in charge of the investigation said Wednesday.

Abigail Hernandez was last seen Wednesday, Oct. 9 after leaving Kennett High School. Police say she walked her normal route toward home and sent several texts between 2:30 and 3 p.m. Police say she never made it home.

Additional Photos

This photo released by Conway, N.H., police shows 15-year-old Abigail Hernandez of North Conway. The Associated Press

The last signal her phone sent was at 3:07 p.m. from the west side of Cranmore Mountain Resort, 2.5 miles from her home.

Her family has made pleas for her safe return and the community has rallied around them, holding vigils, helping search, printing posters and sponsoring billboards seeking information.

Kieran Ramsey, the assistant special agent in charge of the FBI’s Boston division, said leads continue to come in but none has gotten police closer to finding out what happened to Abigail. She may have been in an accident, run away or been abducted.

“For a 15-year-old girl to remain missing for one month, with no financial means and with no contact with her family, is probably every parent’s worst nightmare,” Ramsey said. “We simply don’t have a solid indication (of what happened).”

There is a $20,000 reward for any information that leads to the safe return of Abigail or to information that leads to the arrest and conviction of anyone involved in her disappearance. The FBI also has activated its tips line, 1-800-CALL-FBI.

The mass search efforts that marked the first weeks of the search have given way to targeted efforts, Ramsey said. Beyond searching the wooded terrain and neighborhoods, police have stopped traffic to hand out fliers with Abigail’s picture and have pulled surveillance videotape from area businesses.

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